NSWRail & telegraph
Granville
The colony’s first railway stopped short of Parramatta, and a town grew at the end of the line.
1855First railway ends at Parramatta Junction
WHAT STARTED IT
The Sydney–Parramatta railway opened in 1855 with its terminus on Dog Trap Road, short of Parramatta itself, and the station called Parramatta Junction gave its name to the surrounding forest land. Road, rail and the Duck River later drew industry to the area.
WHAT SUSTAINED IT
Residents voted in July 1880 to rename the township Granville to end confusion with Parramatta, and the Borough of Granville followed in 1885. Hudson Brothers opened railway rolling-stock works on the Duck River in 1883, and factories, tanneries and workers’ housing made Granville an industrial suburb.
TURNING POINTS
1855The Sydney railway opens to a terminus at Parramatta Junction, on Dog Trap Road.
1880A public meeting votes for the name Granville, and the change is gazetted to take effect from 1 August.
1883Hudson Brothers open rolling-stock works on the Duck River.
1885The Borough of Granville is proclaimed, with John Nobbs as first mayor.
1977A Blue Mountains train hits the Bold Street bridge supports, killing 83 people.
WHAT IT DOES NOW
A dense, multicultural suburb split between Cumberland and Parramatta councils, with about 16,700 residents. Its name is also tied to the 1977 Granville rail disaster, in which 83 people died.